February 15, 2026: Sled Dog Championship

We hit the winter trifecta this year:  Pond Hockey, Fishing Derby, and this weekend, the World Championship Sled Dog Derby.

Pulling hard in the Six-Dog Classic race on Saturday.

This year was the 97th running of this championship race event, and the conditions were perfect.  The snow was deep, firm, and dry, and the track packed down well.  It seemed like the teams were moving fast this year.

We went on Saturday morning to see the 6-dog competition.  The teams went out on the track at two minutes intervals, and the starts were exciting as the handlers did their best to keep the highly energized, impatient athletes in place waiting for the starting gun.

The starting line is loud and hectic with the dogs barking relentlessly as if saying "let's go already!"  But when they finally get released, the team becomes silent, and it's all business.

Almost time

And...  they're off!

Teams in the unlimited class, which ran in the afternoon, can have a dozen or more dogs, but even the six-dog teams go fast.  (I left the audio track in so you'll get the international flavor of the event.)

There's a wide range of breeds that run; I think this was the most handsome team.

By the time the teams are are coming back to the finish line, their demeanor is not quite as enthusiastic as at the start, and long dangling tongues prove they put all their effort into the race for their musher.  Here's the same team at the start, and then at the finish:

Start

Finish

Here's another team:

The start

And the finish

Snow plastered on the faces of the second and third row shows why it pays to work hard to be the lead dog!

The races continue today with the six-dog Classic at 10:00, the three-dog Juniors at 12:00, the one-dog Juniors at 12:40, and the unlimited at 1:30.  The best place to watch is the start-finish line right across from the State School on North Main Street in Laconia.

I'll close with a status of my bird count through Saturday:

7 black-capped chickadees, 3 tufted titmice, 3 white-breasted nuthatches, 2 red-breasted nuthatches, 1 downy woodpecker, 1 hairy woodpecker, and 1 red-bellied woodpecker  

Nothing unexpected, but it was nice for the Red-bellied Woodpecker to make an appearance.

I saw no goldfinches, juncos, mourning doves, or even squirrels, but there's still today to observe.  Tom Crane has all the doves this winter - here's a photo he took:

I count 18 mourning doves enjoying the sun in Tom's yard over looking Lake Wicwas.

So we're at the end the major winter events in the Lakes Region, though the Alton Bay Ice Runway is still operational, and next Saturday, the Meredith Conservation Commission is leading a guided snowshoe trip at the Page Pond Town forest, and there are still a couple of spots available.  If you're interested you can find the details on the Meredith Conservation Commission website here.